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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: prune · lean · net · cell · last · court · kick · leaves

  1. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. cell — in biology
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. net — for catching
  5. net — in sport
  6. cell — a phone
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. prune — to trim
  11. lean — thin
  12. court — of law
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. net — after costs
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. lean — to bend
  17. last — final
  18. court — for sport
  19. kick — in football
  20. prune — to trim
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. last — finally
  23. last — to go on
  24. court — of a king

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com